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Promethean

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Revision as of 13:52, September 25, 2012 by Retriokillswitch (talk | contribs) (Separated the background section into two more cohesive sections regarding the original organic Prometheans and the mechanical ones encountered on Requiem)

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"Oh, but what I would not give to have even a single company of Prometheans here right now... oh, they would most certainly restore order with their trademark lethality..."
— 343 Guilty Spark musing to himself as his Installation is about to be destroyed.[1]

The Prometheans were the highest and most respected group of Warrior-Servants in the Forerunner ecumene.[2] During and after the Human-Forerunner War, they were led by the Didact. Elements of the Prometheans survived the Forerunner-Flood war and the activation of the Halo Array, eventually awakening within the shield world Requiem and rising to oppose the UNSC in 2557.[3]

Background

Organic Prometheans

Physically, Prometheans were the highest form a Warrior-Servant could mutate to, standing around two times the height of a Forerunner Manipular and weighing about four or five times a Manipular's mass.[4] They were heavily muscled, their hands capable of easily crushing a human.[5] Their mental capabilities were also very sophisticated; it was common for a Promethean to share information and sensory input with the warriors under their command.[6] Prometheans were also capable of controlling a million remote-controlled craft, such as weapon-ships, simultaneously.[7]

They also used powerful vehicles known as war sphinxes for large-scale operations.[8] In order to combat the parasitic Flood during the Forerunner-Flood war, the Prometheans' arsenal of weapons was specifically tailored to disintegrate biomass to prevent Flood infection.[9]

The Prometheans were responsible for creating "Warrior Keeps" known as Cryptums, where an exiled warrior could live in suspended animation for thousands of years.

Mechanical Prometheans

The Prometheans encountered by UNSC and Storm forces on Requiem are mechanical in nature and encompass various classes of leader units known as Knights, support drones known as Watchers, and small, pack-oriented Crawlers serving mostly as cannon fodder.[3] Visually, unlike most Forerunner technology which is chiefly angular and geometric, Promethean units have a more curved, almost biomechanical aesthetic. Various Promethean units, including Knights, Watchers and war sphinxes, also have distinct heads embedded in their mechanical carapaces, complete with stylized facial features.

The origin of these Prometheans is currently unknown.

History

Following the Human-Forerunner War and the discovery of the Flood, the Prometheans, under the leadership of the Didact, stood in opposition to the radical faction of Builders led by Master Builder Faber, who proposed the construction of the Halo Array. They lost the political battle and were subsequently removed from the Ecumene Council, with the Master Builder's allies rising to power in the Council instead. Disgraced, the Didact and some of the other highest-ranking Prometheans were allowed the dignified choice of exile in a Cryptum, while some of the lesser-ranked commanders were accorded more severe punishments.[10]

After a thousand years of exile, the Didact was reawakened amidst the Forerunner-Flood war. Shortly after his revival, a radical shift occurred in the Council, and Faber lost his political power due to his crimes against the Mantle. Called upon to defend the ecumene against the onslaught of the Flood, the new Council elevated the Prometheans back to their former status, and the Didact resumed his duties as the supreme commander of Forerunner military forces.[11] Under the Didact's leadership, the Prometheans would lead the ecumene's defenses against the Flood until the end of the conflict and the activation of the Halo Array.

Approximately five years after the end of the Human-Covenant War, John-117 and Cortana, drifting aboard the wreckage of the UNSC Forward Unto Dawn, came across the Forerunner world of Requiem, where they faced hostile Promethean defense constructs.[3]

Known Prometheans

Promethean units

Trivia

  • The Prometheans are introduced as a new enemy class in Halo 4.
  • The name "Promethean" was probably inspired by the Titan Prometheus in Greek mythology, who gave the gift of fire to mankind. However, there is no in-universe relation between the names, as the Forerunners predated the Greeks by well over 100,000 years.
  • "Promethean" was one of the names Doctor Halsey considered for the SPARTAN-II Program.[12]

Gallery

  • Promethean Knight.

    Promethean Knight.

  • Promethean Watcher.

    Promethean Watcher.

  • Promethean Crawler.

    Promethean Crawler.

  • John-117 facing a Promethean Cryptum.[13]

    John-117 facing a Promethean Cryptum.[13]

List of appearances

Sources

  1. ^ Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary - Terminal 10
  2. ^ Halo: Cryptum, page 54
  3. ^ a b c Halo 4 Official Site, Characters
  4. ^ Halo: Cryptum, page 65
  5. ^ Halo: Cryptum, page 77
  6. ^ Halo: Cryptum, page 162
  7. ^ Halo: Cryptum, page 174
  8. ^ Halo: Cryptum, page 95
  9. ^ GameInformer, October 2012 edition (digital content)
  10. ^ Halo: Cryptum, page 238-239
  11. ^ Halo: Primordium, page 336-339
  12. ^ Dr. Halsey's personal journal
  13. ^ Xbox.com: Xbox Press Center - Halo 4 - Artwork (Halo 4 Key Art - Cryptum_Vertical)
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